I rarely write reviews — Generally not worth my time or energy. Here is an unfortunate aberration. I am writing this because I feel compelled to let others know how completely upsetting this dinner experience was.

I made reservations for Al Veluu over a month in advance, speaking to the “son of the former owners” who said I secured the terrace for dinner. The same manager called me to confirm the reservation the day of, and oddly asked me what hotel I was staying at. I did not think much of the question until we arrived at the restaurant and had been placed in a canopied room far from the terrace, next to a wood-burning oven on a 85 degree evening with no view.

Racking my brain to try to figure what had happened after speaking to the hostess and the manager about how I made specific arrangements several weeks before, it finally dawned on me: Foolishly, I made the mistake of letting the owner know I was staying at not the most expensive/best hotel at Lake Como when he called to confirm the reservation. And he, in turn, downgraded the experience for us thinking we would not have enough money to spend on the meal, and be deserving of the “good seats.” I know this because I was at the Grand Tremezzo hotel before dining at Al Veluu for drinks and saw three separate couples from that hotel be sat on the terrace after we had arrived. I highly doubt they had tried to make the same arrangements I did prior to the visit, but the perceived wealth seemed to be the deciding factor. I have never felt so judged or shamed in my life — sounds dramatic but the owner of this restaurant seriously leveled me and I do not wish this type of experience on anyone else visiting Lake Como.

Other notes: the food was mediocre. The best dish was the pesto and meat pasta. The server tried to sneak in a 2017 vintage of wine when we ordered a 2016 thinking we would not see the label (just to add some insult-to-injury icing on top). The steak tartare tasted ranked, semi masked by a massive amount of luke warm grey poupon mustard. I give it a D minus. The cut of the meat we received for one of our main courses was so fatty and tendoiny, half of it was inedible. Let’s give it a C plus.

Net net, I would not come here unless you are hoping to spend your evening with rude people and eating below average food. If you are however, looking for your ego to get knocked through fairly antiquated, though generously performed executions of marginalization, this is definitely your spot. Seriously this was such a Julia Robert’s moment from the movie Pretty Woman.

At the end of the day, there is a ton of bad stuff happening in the world and a bad meal pales in comparison to a lot that is going on. That said, having lived in Manhattan for 12 years, I always thought food and hospitality to be the great equalizers. It saddens me that the owner of Al Veluu would not allow me, and probably others, to take part in what could have been a better experience. I wish he had told me that were no reservations available when I called over a month ago instead of smothering my face in his disheartening bias and subpar food.

Do not come here. Seriously no joke.